SHIMLA: Amid continuing heavy rainfall, the Himachal Pradesh government has authorised Deputy Commissioners (DCs) and Sub-Divisional Magistrates (SDMs) to decide at the local level whether to declare holidays in educational institutions.
Meanwhile, all government and private educational institutions, medical educational institutes and anganwadi centres in Solan and Sirmaur districts will remain closed following a warning of heavy to very heavy rainfall.
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for light to moderate rain with a few intense spells in Solan, Shimla, Sirmaur, Kullu and Mandi districts.
Education Minister Rohit Thakur said the decision to declare holidays due to heavy rain would be taken by the concerned DCs and SDMs.
He said the power was delegated to the district administration two years ago and that he had asked the department to resend the guidelines to all Deputy Commissioners to enable them to take decisions independently.
"The power to declare holidays in educational institutions was delegated to the district administration as it was not practical for the department to take a uniform decision for all districts," Thakur said.
He also announced that teaching and non-teaching staff would now be granted leave along with students if schools are closed due to weather-related events. Earlier, only students were given holidays in such situations.
Meanwhile, school children from Chhintala Blavg village in Mandi district continue to face serious difficulties in reaching school because of the rising water level in a hydel project dam. In the absence of a proper bridge or road, they are forced to cross the water using an old swing (jhula).
Villagers said transporting children across the dam has become a daily challenge and alleged that the decades-old swing is in poor condition, posing a serious safety risk.
Calling it a matter of grave concern, villager Bodh Raj recently shared a video of the situation on social media. He said repeated appeals to the concerned minister and the local MLA to replace or upgrade the swing with a safer alternative have not yielded any concrete action.
Elsewhere, continuous rainfall in Kullu district has caused rivers and rivulets to swell, raising concerns over flash floods, landslides and road disruptions. Although no major loss of life or property has been reported so far, the district administration remains on high alert.
The Pagal nullah in Sainj Valley has repeatedly brought slush onto roads, disrupting traffic and increasing the risk of accidents.
The Dandu Cho waterfall in the Sheel area also witnessed a sudden surge in water following a cloudburst in its catchment area, highlighting the volatile nature of mountain streams during the monsoon.
